Sweeney heads back to Cedar Rapids to rest his knees

When Ryan Sweeney answered his cell phone Tuesday, he and his fiancee, Natasha, had just driven through Cheyenne, Wyo., about 10 hours from pulling into Cedar Rapids.

“I've got my car packed to the brim, and my dog is in the back seat sleeping,” Sweeney said. “I just want to get home. I'm tired of living out of a suitcase.”

The former Cedar Rapids Xavier prep just completed his second full season in the major leagues. The 24-year-old outfielder played in 134 games for the Oakland A's, hitting .293 with 31 doubles, six home runs and 53 RBIs.

Despite balky knees, he closed strong, hitting .360 with 10 doubles and 16 RBIs in September. You saw him a few times on ESPN's Web Gems this summer, making great catches in center field, including one in which he leaped over the fence in Texas to rob the Rangers' Ian Kinsler of a game-winning home run.

Sweeney said that brilliant play may have caused the start of his knee problems.

“When I got back to the dugout it was like ‘Man, something doesn't feel right,'” Sweeney said. “I had tightness underneath my left kneecap.”

By season's end, Sweeney said he had tendinitis in both knees and a slight tear in his left patella. He received something called platelet-rich plasma injections and won't be able to run for about a month.

He hopes to avoid surgery.

“I think it's just one of those things that when you keep playing, it doesn't heal,” he said. “So hopefully with rest, it will.”

Sweeney also hopes his career year was good enough to keep him an important part of the Athletics.

The Oakland Tribune speculated last week that the A's might try to acquire help in the off-season to upgrade power at the corner-outfield positions. General Manager Billy Beane was quoted as saying Rajai Davis deserves the opportunity to be Oakland's starting center fielder next season.

“It was a good season,” said Sweeney, whose team finished 75-87 and on a seven-game losing streak. “I mean, you always could have done better. But I improved on every single stat this season, except stolen bases. That was basically because Oakland didn't really have me try and steal much because of my knees.

“It's like I told my agent, hopefully every year I'll just try and keep progressing. Increase the RBIs, increase the home runs and the batting average.”

Teams have hoped Sweeney - who was traded to the A's from the Chicago White Sox after the 2007 season - will develop power as he matures as a hitter. At 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, he has the body for it.

“Ryan tends to be a little unaggressive at times,” Oakland hitting coach Jim Skaalen told the Oakland Tribune late in the season. “His timing is so good, and his balance is so good, that I want him ready to hit that first pitch because he's going to let it go if it's not a good pitch.”

Sweeney will spend most of the off-season in Cedar Rapids, with the exception of his wedding (to a woman he met in Oakland) Nov. 28 in Walnut Grove, Calif., and subsequent honeymoon.

“Having (two) full seasons in now, you feel like you belong,” Sweeney said. “But there's always room for improvement. It's hard enough to get to the majors. To stay there is not easy, either.”